Original contribution
Emergency intubation with the combitube®: Comparison with the endotracheal airway

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0196-0644(05)81261-2Get rights and content

Study objective:

To evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the Combitube® as used by ICU nurses under medical supervision compared with endotracheal airway established by ICU physicians during CPR.

Design:

Prospective study of ICU patients over a seven-month period.

Setting:

Medical ICU.

Participants:

Thirty-seven patients suffering from cardiac arrest.

Interventions:

Emergency intubation with either the Combitube® by nurses or the endotracheal airway by physicians and subsequent mechanical ventilation.

Measurements and main results:

Evaluation of blood gases after 20 minutes of mechanical ventilation. Intubation time was shorter for the Combitube® (P < .001). Blood gases for each device showed comparable results; Pao2 was slightly higher during ventilation with the Combitube® (P <. 001).

Conclusion:

The Combitube® as used by ICU nurses was as effective as establishment of the endotracheal airway by intensivists during CPR. The Combitude® may be used whenever endotracheal intubation cannot be performed immediately.

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Presented in part at the Fourth International Conference on Emergency Medicine in Washington, DC, May 1992.

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